Many companies and individuals use various methods for transacting business over the Internet. Using the Internet to transact business provides a fast, efficient, and convenient means for the various parties to interact in an on-line environment. Generally, a seller offers products (goods, services, information or the like) on a website which is viewed by a buyer. If the buyer wishes to purchase the product, the buyer supplies a credit card number or other form of payment or credit to the seller. However, the seller then often is required to verify that the buyer's credit card account is authorized, bill for the product, collect the amount owed, arrange for transportation, obtain insurance on the goods shipment and track the shipment of the goods. Additionally, when the buyer uses its credit line to purchase the goods, the buyer's credit line is depleted until the buyer supplies payment for the goods or cancels the order. Oftentimes, the buyer or seller needs to find a financial institution to be involved in the transaction process. Moreover, for the parties involved, determining supply and demand while maintaining an appropriate inventory of goods is difficult. As such, buyers and sellers have encountered large expenses in, for example, storage fees, inventory costs, and disposal fees, especially in the perishable goods industry.
One example of a perishable goods industry is the seafood industry. Typically, a seller receives inventory and contacts the buyer in order to make a sale. Once the transaction is negotiated, the product is delivered to the buyer. The seller, however, usually waits 30-120 days after delivery to receive payment for the goods. As such, the seller's money may remain tied up in delivered inventory until (if ever) payment is finally made by the buyer. In addition, poor transportation planning, data storage and retrieval, and communication have resulted in a waste of substantial amounts of time and money, which ultimately has a detrimental effect on the seafood distributors and the ultimate consumer. For example, current industry practice typically allows for frequent glut/shortage scenarios, where large unsold supplies in one area and unavoidable boom or bust catches of fishermen results in low prices for the fishermen and high prices and decreased quality (e.g., from storage and/or freezing) to the ultimate consumer. Thus, a method and system for efficient supply, demand, delivery and payment of perishable goods is needed to more evenly distribute the benefits and burdens of the impacted industry.